Completely removing a printer requires two things - removing the printer itself, and then removing the driver. There are several ways you can do these things on Windows 11. They are:
Perhaps the most common method, a printer can be easily removed from the Windows Settings application. Here's how to do it:
Press Win I to open Settings. Then click Bluetooth and Devices in the left pane.
On the right, click Printers and Scanners.
Click on the printer you want to uninstall.
Select Delete.
When prompted, click Yes.
Device Manager allows you to manage and remove device drivers on Windows. Here's how to use it to remove a printer driver:
Right-click the Start menu and select "Device Manager".
Expand Print Queue branch.
Right-click your printer and select Uninstall Device.
When prompted, click "Uninstall".
#That’s it, you have deleted the printer driver.
The native Windows Tools application also allows you to remove printer-related drivers. Here's how to do it:
Press Start, type windows tools, and then press Enter.
After opening, double-click Print Management.
This will open the Print Management window. You can also open the Print Management window by searching in the Start menu.
Once it opens, click All Drivers in the left pane (under Custom Filters).
Locate the printer whose driver you want to remove, then right-click it and select Remove Driver Package...
When prompted, click Yes.
Windows 11 Home Edition users do not have access to the Print Management window. However, they can still remove the driver package using command terminals such as PowerShell and Command Prompt. Here, we start with the former:
Press Start, type powershell, right-click on it, and select "Run as administrator" .
Now, first, type the following command and get the list of printer drivers on your computer:
Get-PrinterDriver | Format-List Name
Press the Enter key. After creating the list, note the names of the printers whose drivers you want to remove.
Then type the following command:
Remove-PrinterDriver -Name "Printer Name"
Here, Make sure to delete the printer name with the actual name of the printer given in the list like this:
If you prefer the Command Prompt, here’s how to remove the printer driver using the printui command:
Press Start, type cmd, then right-click Command Prompt and select "Run as administrator" .
Then first, we'll use a slightly modified version of an earlier PowerShell command to get a list of printer names on the system:
powershell "Get -Printer | Format-List Name"
Press the Enter key. As before, you will get a list of printer names. Make a note of the one you want to delete.
Then type the following printui command:
printui.exe /dl /n "Printer Name"
Make sure to replace Printer Name with the actual name of the printer you recorded earlier.
Then click Enter.
You can also directly access the printer shell folder on your PC and delete your printer entry from there. Here's how to do it:
Press Win R to open the run box. Then copy the following command:
explorer shell:::{2227A280-3AEA-1069-A2DE-08002B30309D}
and paste it into the run box. Press Enter.
Now just right-click on your printer and select Delete.
Click Yes when prompted.
In some cases, you may not be able to use one or more of the above methods Remove the printer. There are several reasons. Maybe there are pending printer jobs in the queue that need to be cleared first, or the printer service is currently running. Whatever the case may be, it's best to use as many fixes as possible to get to the heart of the problem. Here are all the fixes you can apply to proceed with completely removing the printer from your Windows PC.
Various printer-related issues may arise in Windows. So of course there is a dedicated "most common" printer troubleshooter that can diagnose and resolve printer-related issues for you so that once those issues are resolved, the removal can proceed smoothly. Here's how to use the printer troubleshooter:
Press Win I to open settings. Then scroll down on the right and select Troubleshoot.
Click Additional Troubleshooting.
Click Run next to the printer.
#This will open the Get Help window. Here, click Yes to agree to proceed with the diagnosis and try automated steps to resolve the issue.
Under "Did this solve your problem?" click "No".
Wait for the diagnostics to run and check for spooler service errors.
Then select your printer.
Let the scan run again, and then apply any fixes the troubleshooter recommends.
If your printer has pending print jobs in the queue, this means it is still working with Windows interact and wait to continue completing them. Your request to remove the printer will be denied unless this issue is resolved. Here's how to delete pending printer jobs:
Press Win I to open the Settings app. Then click Bluetooth and Devices in the left pane.
Click Printers and Scanners on the right.
Select your printer.
Click to open the print queue.
Click the three-dot icon next to the printer.
Select Cancel all.
When prompted, click Yes.
#After removing these, you can try to remove the printer from the method given above.
If your printer drivers are the problem, perhaps removing them from another location will solve the problem. Here's how to remove a printer driver using print server properties:
Press Win I to open the Settings application. Then click Bluetooth and Devices in the left pane.
Click Printers and Scanners on the right.
Scroll down and click Print Server Properties under Related Settings.
In the Print Server Properties window, click the Driver tab.
Here, select your printer. Then click Delete.
When prompted, select Remove driver and driver package.
Then click "OK".
Click again is .
Finally, click Delete again.
If you encounter an error here, move on to the next fix.
The Print Spooler service (also known as the Printer Service) is known to have caused a lot of problems in the past. If there's a problem removing the printer, if it's still running, it's likely to throw out a monkey wrench in the process. You may want to stop it first and then proceed with the printer removal method.
Press Start, type Services, and then press Enter.
Now find the Print Spooler service, right-click on it and select Stop.
If you installed a printer application to handle print jobs, removing it first can help resolve printer deletion question.
Press Win I to open the Settings app. Then select Applications in the left pane.
#Select Installed Applications on the right.
Scroll down the list of installed applications and click the three-dot icon next to the Printer application.
Select Uninstall.
Click Uninstall again.
After the uninstallation is complete, try to delete the printer using the above method.
Windows creates registry entries for every little piece of hardware and software that comes into your system. But these redundant registry entries can also be a hindrance. You may also benefit from deleting the printer's registry key. Here's how to do it:
Press Start, type regedit, and press Enter.
Then navigate to the following address in the Registry Editor:
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Control\Print\Printers
Alternatively, copy and paste the above into the address bar of Registry Editor and press Enter.
Now, find your printer under the Printer key in the left pane. Right-click on it and select Delete.
Click is .
#That’s it, you have deleted the printer from the Windows registry. Try to remove it from other areas using the methods given above.
Let’s take a look at some frequently asked questions about removing and removing printers from Windows 11.
If you are unable to remove a printer on Windows 11, it is most likely because the driver that is using the printer or the printer service is still running. You may also want to delete the printer entry from the registry. See the fix given above for more information.
To completely remove your printer, you must remove it from the Settings application, delete its driver package, and delete any applications or pending print jobs that may be associated with the printer. It is also recommended to clean the printer's registry files.
The steps to uninstall an HP printer on Windows 11 are the same as for other printers. If you encounter any issues during this process, use the methods and fixes provided in this tutorial.
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